Center, Program and Institute Affiliations

Research Summary

The identity of a cell type is determined by genes it expresses and those it silences, where transcriptional and epigenetic regulations play a central role. Differentiation of hematopoietic stem cells to antigen responding T cells is accompanied by many stages of cell identity transition. Our lab aims to decode how key transcription factors coopts epigenetic mechanisms to maintain the cell identity and instigate the transitions during the following biological processes:

1. T cell development in the thymus, from immature progenitors, to bipotent cells, and then mature CD8+ and CD4+ single positive cells.

Our current focus is on Tcf1 and Lef1 transcription factors, their co-activator beta-catenin, and corepressor TLE/Groucho proteins. We are using molecular biology, genomics, proteomics, and bioinformatics approaches to decipher their distinct and conserved roles in programming different immunological processes.